Energy News

Cheap Energy with New Solar Device

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:46:00 GMT

Researchers and scientists are putting on endless effort to make the sources of energy clean and green. There are many devices in the market that run on solar energy. The alternative energy atmosphere is charged with anticipation and excitement. But till now one of the biggest dampeners in green energy scenario is the prices. [...]
Posted in: Future Energy, Inventions, Solar Power

Tesla Motors using Dana's battery cooling tech in the Roadster

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 11:14:00 GMT

Ohio-based parts supplier says its technology helps to keep lithium-ion batteries cool and extend their lifespan in hybrid and electric vehicles.

Inside cleantech India: Kal, Aaj aur Kal!

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 08:18:00 GMT

Waste fuels new power projects in Gujarat and Delhi, while a high-level group is forming to give green ratings to companies across all sectors of India's economy.

Diversified Energy prepares gasification tech for fabrication

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:36:00 GMT

Arizona-based company puts its algae business on the back burner as it concentrates on its gasifier and biofuels research.

U.S. Military Veterans Call for Sustainable Fuels

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:30:00 GMT

On this Veterans Day, set aside to honor the sacrifices and contributions of U.S. military veterans, another contribution can be added to the rolls: veterans are playing a strong part in America's transition away from fossil fuels into a more sustainable, healthful environment and a more secure energy future.

Veterans groups including Operation Free, VoteVets, and an ad hoc group of retired senior military officials are calling for more sustainable fuels and a lower carbon footprint, a position that reflects the Pentagon's growing urgency to free its high mobility, high tech 21st century warriors from the burden of using fossil fuels that harken back to the days of kerosene lamps and horse drawn buggies. It also reflects an under-the-radar green metamorphosis in the philosophy of U.S. national defense itself.

Read more of this story »

Innovative Powder Catalyst Used to Transform Methane into Methanol

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:43:00 GMT

Max Planck Institute for Coal Research and at the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces have invented a material in the form of a powder than can transform methane into methanol, which is easier to transport and handle.

REI’s LEED Certified Stores

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 05:15:00 GMT

LEED Gold REI Store In Round Rock, TX (image: REI)

REI’s newest LEED certified retail stores are evidence that smart business and environmental responsibility sometimes lead down the same path. These new stores enjoy lower operating costs, and customers appreciate the company’s dedication to sustainable building.

(more…)

New System Using Microbes to Convert CO2 to Biofuels in a Single-Step Process

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:57:00 GMT

These microbes feed on solar power and synthesize both the alkane and olefin molecules. Although the hydrocarbon fuels have only been produced in lab quantities, the company plans a pilot demonstration for 2011.

Veolia, NanoH20 partner on membrane technology

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 03:29:00 GMT

Five-year collaboration is expected to test California startup’s energy efficient nanocomposite membranes in seawater.

Sulfurcell Creates Solar Cladding for Modular Building Systems

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 02:05:00 GMT

The German solar producer Sulfurcell produces these durable solar integrated panels as cladding modules that can be designed onto new buildings as well as retrofitted onto old buildings to power the building. The exterior is hardened glass; on the back is thinfilm.

The retrofit is possible because each module is hung like a conventional cladding system on the outside of the building installed on a substructure, so even uneven exterior surfaces could be used.

Read more of this story »

Baby Power! U.K. Companies Convert Diapers to Energy

Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:50:00 GMT

In a move that fairly reeks with symbolism, The U.K. companies Versus Energy and Knowaste have teamed up to build the first diaper recycling plant in England, and it will be located in a region that was once the heart of the Industrial Revolution. The new recycling plant will power itself with sustainable energy generated from the organic materials recovered from disposable diapers.

Organic waste accounts for only 2% of the materials in “pre-owned” disposable diapers. What happens to the other 98%? It will be dried, sterilized, and separated into reusable paper pulp and plastic. The end use of those materials has not yet been announced but based on Knowaste's past experience, roof tiles, shoe insoles, wallpaper, plastic “wood,” and industrial thickeners are likely candidates.

Read more of this story »

Water Stocks News - Wescorp Energy and Cancen Oil Canada commence construction on remediation units for first facility

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:00:00 GMT

CALGARY- November 11, 2009 - Wescorp Energy Inc. (OTCBB: WSCE) is pleased to announce that, further to the joint venture partnership with Cancen Oil Canada Corporation, construction of the first two Wescorp remediation units has commenced.

Cost of Extra Year's Climate Inaction $500 Billion: IEA

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:00:00 GMT

(none)

Ormat Signs PPA for 30 MW of Geothermal Power

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:00:00 GMT

11/11/2009 - Ormat Technologies, Inc...

EIA: Oil and Fuel Prices on Their Way Up as Economy Recovers

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:00:00 GMT

If U.S. and world economic conditions continue to improve, oil prices are expected to escalate to $81 per barrel by December 2010, according to the DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA). The rising oil prices are already driving up the cost of gasoline and diesel fuel.

Japan's Tokai University Solar Car Wins the Global Green Challenge

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:00:00 GMT

Powered by Sharp multijunction solar cells developed for satellites, the Tokai University Solar Car blazed 3,000 kilometers down the center of Australia at an average speed of 62 miles per hour to win the Global Green Challenge race.

BLM and CEC Release Draft EIS for the 400-MW Ivanpah Solar Project

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:00:00 GMT

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the California Energy Commission (CEC) have completed a draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the proposed Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System Project, which will produce 400 megawatts using solar power towers.

Report Charts Path for U.S. Offshore Wind Power Development

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:00:00 GMT

A new report lays out the efforts needed to make offshore wind power a reality in the United States, while summarizing the efforts currently underway. Projects have been proposed up and down the East Coast, while recent studies are examining the wind power potential of the Great Lakes.

ACEEE: California Leads the Country in Energy Efficiency Policies

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 17:00:00 GMT

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEE) ranked California at the top of its annual survey of state energy efficiency efforts. The nonprofit grades the states on six categories, including transportation policies and appliance efficiency standards.

Algal Tidbits from the Pacific Rim Summit

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:22:00 GMT

My presentation is tomorrow, but I have sat through some very interesting presentations over the past couple of days here at the Pacific Rim Summit on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioenergy. They have five panels going at once, but I have been sitting in on the cellulosic ethanol, algal fuel, and biomass logistics sessions for the most part. They will have links up to the presentations at some point, but I have been taking a lot of notes (12 pages of notes so far!)

On algae, these were some of the more pessimistic comments from various presenters, some of whom are executives at algae companies:

"Algae carries a great deal of technical risk."

Asked about expected cost of algal oil: "I don't know, because we don't have any plants."

"Photobioreactors (PBRs) are not a smart way to make algal fuel."

"To scrub the emissions from a coal-fired power plant would require 35,000 acres of PBRs at a cost of $5 million per acre. But we might be able to get that down to $1 million per acre."

"I calculate that it will take 36,000 acres of PBRs to scrub a power plant. The bottom line for those who would propose to use algae in this way? Abandon all hope." - comment from the next presenter

"ExxonMobil is investing in algae but they said it would take 10 years to figure out if it was going to work."

"Based on the absolute maximum solar capture at the equator, the theoretical maximum production of algal oil at the equator is 17,486 gallons per acre per year. The reality in Honolulu is about 833 gallons per acre per year. The energy balance - even with very optimistic assumptions and not including all of the unit operations - is well below 1.7 units out per unit in."

"25 gallons of water is consumed per gallon of algal oil produced."

"Algal oils are not economically viable."

Now in fairness, these were comments of various presenters and some of the audience members took exception to some of the comments. One person commented that the water usage from corn ethanol when the corn has to be irrigated is much higher. Someone else pointed out that these comments did not apply to the fermentation approaches.

Incidentally, as a science project my oldest son is growing Spirulina at home under different conditions. We are also attempting to extract oil from some Haematococcus samples that we have. As a science project, I think this is fine (although it is more difficult than you might imagine). But nobody here seems to be too optimistic about algal fuels in either open ponds or PBRs anytime soon. I think the jury is still out on the fermentation approaches such as what Solazyme is working on.

Biggest Public Utility in US Exploring Geothermal Energy to Help Ramp Up to 40% by 2020

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:20:00 GMT

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) has signed a lease for exploring geothermal potential in Imperial County near the Salton Sea; as part of meeting its goal to make 40% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020.

It is offering to lease the land, initially for 5 years of exploration and study at $295,000 annually representing $100 per acre per year, under a MOU regarding “Imperial Valley Geothermal Feasibility and Exploration” while it determines the feasibility of geothermal production there.

Read more of this story »

Waiting for the cleantech tide to turn in shipping

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:58:00 GMT

Shipping hasn't yet ignited the cleantech investment community, but that could change in the next 3-5 years with stricter regulation, higher costs and other drivers.

Southern Power starts on 100 MW Texas biomass plant

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 08:59:00 GMT

New facility is expected to require 1 million tons of fuel a year, with forest residue sourced from a 75-mile radius around the project site.

Wisconsin village mulls limits on residential wind turbines

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 07:57:00 GMT

From a story by Carl Agnelly on WKOW-TV:

WEST BARABOO (WKOW) — The top of a shed on Ron Ballweg's property is speckled with solar panels.

“I just wanted to be energy sufficient for myself, so if something happened, I've got electricity,” Ballweg said on Monday.

Then the West Baraboo man wanted to do more. He found another renewable way to power his furnace. “I noticed here in the winter, it's always windy down here,” he said, describing his backyard, one block from the Baraboo River.

So up went a residential turbine. It's planted on top of the same roof as his solar-electric equipment. When tilted upright, the panel reaches a height of 40 feet.

At least it did. Last spring, a building inspector noticed the turbine needed a permit, based off other requirements for towers.

“So I thought, well, I'm going to flip it up in the air for a week or two so they see what it looks like,” Ballweg said about village officials and neighbors. “It's not that big. It's not that intrusive.”

Ever since, village board members have been spinning over what to do with Ballweg's turbine, and any future ones that another resident might want to install.

The local planning commission last week recommended any turbines be set back from property lines, power lines, and roads… at least as far away as a turbine is tall.

Having said that, area residential turbine experts doubt turbines like Ballweg's might be effective. Mike Kieraldo with the Madison office of Seventh Generation Energy Systems said as a general rule, a turbine should be at least 80 to 100 feet. At that height, wind is less obstructed by trees and buildings.

“The taller the turbine, the more wind you're going to get out of that machine,” he said.

Building a taller turbine, though, could then be difficult if communities adopt standards like what West Baraboo is proposing. In a residential neighborhood, property lines are tighter. For that reason, Kieraldo said private wind turbines make the most sense on farms or rural residential property.

UK & Europe - Nov 10

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 07:08:00 GMT

-Europe Must Stop 'Fetishizing' American Relationship
-Britain rules out climate treaty at summit
-Recession 'fuels UK shoplifting'
-10 new nuclear power stations named
-Spain's windfarms set new national record for electricity generation

Toshiba Dynario Fuel Cell Device Charger

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 07:01:00 GMT

Toshiba Dynario Fuel Cell Device Charger (photo: Toshiba)

The first commercially available fuel cell device charger is here! (Well, technically it’s only “here” if you’re reading this in Japan, but that should soon change). Toshiba’s Dynario charger packs fuel cell technology into a portable package that can provide instant power to a dead mobile phone or other gadget, completely off the grid.
(more…)

The "best" technology does not always win

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:29:00 GMT

Cleantech Group's Greg Neichin reflects on the hurdles of bringing breakthrough technology to market versus those with the right mix of ease of implementation and return.

The Real Policy Lesson From the Chinese Wind Turbine "Scare"

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 05:14:00 GMT

Originally posted at the Breakthrough Institute

By Yael Borofsky and Jesse Jenkins

Outcry over a planned Texas wind farm, which will be the first project to import wind turbines from a Chinese manufacturer, has resulted in calls to prevent government stimulus money from funding the project. As Bloomberg reported, in a letter to U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Senator Charles Schumer insisted that funding only be granted to U.S. manufactured turbines.

"I urge you to reject any request for stimulus money unless the high-value components, including the wind turbines, are manufactured in the United States...China is fast emerging as one of our main rivals in the race to build the technology that can help us achieve energy independence. We should not be giving China a head start in this race at our own country's expense."

But those expressing alarm that money from the stimulus package will accrue to China are forgetting that importing wind turbine components is actually nothing new in the United States. In fact, this story broke at almost that same time that a new investigative report by the American University School of Communication revealed that 84% of the U.S. stimulus money for renewable projects has been given to overseas companies.

It is certainly symbolic that this project, which is being carried out by a consortium of Chinese and American companies, will be built with the first wind turbines imported from China. Yet, imported wind turbine components made up about 50% of installed capacity this year, with parts largely being exported from Europe. General Electric (GE) is the only American company represented among the top five wind component manufacturers in the world. As long as the U.S. lags in domestic turbine manufacturing, and as long as wind projects need turbines, it is inevitable that the parts for these efforts will be sourced from the foreign market.

According to Bloomberg, the lack of domestic manufacturing in wind turbine components prompted the Alliance for American Manufacturing to ask:

"Why aren't American firms building this clean-energy project?

The reason for the lack of American presence in wind turbine manufacturing is clear: inconsistent government investment and public policy support. Prior to 2006, the U.S. production tax credit (PTC) for wind installations expired on an almost annual-basis before eventual reinstatement, leading to a boom-bust domestic market that created crippling investor uncertainty and prevented major investments in U.S. manufacturing capacity.

In contrast, Denmark's Vestas became the world leader in wind turbine manufacturing with the crucial support of consistent, long-term public investment from the Danish government. The same situation is true for Germany's Siemens and Spain's Gamesa, where feed-in tariff policies provide strong and consistent support for domestic markets as well as investor certainty for manufacturing and technology companies. The same story is now taking shape in China, where new guaranteed wind tariff prices have been launched and the Chinese government has provided direct support for China's turbine manufacturers.

The good news for the U.S. is this: the share of foreign-manufactured turbine components used in U.S. wind farms has been falling - we imported 70% of components in 2005, compared to the 50% today. This improvement is due to the instatement in 2006 of a long-term production tax credit (PTC) that, thanks to subsequent extensions, will now remain in force through the end of 2012. And as our European competitors have shown, leadership in wind turbine manufacturing has far less to do with the price of labor than it does with sustained and effective public policy support. After all, EU labor prices hardly offer an inherent comparative advantage over the U.S., let alone over Chinese or Indian wind competitors.

Now, with relatively consistent public policy support finally in place - at least for the next few years - there has been a subsequent increase in investment in U.S. manufacturing capacity. Still, with U.S. wind companies long lagging behind their foreign competitors, much of this new investment comes as leading foreign companies like Vestas, Siemens, and Gamesa all open U.S. manufacturing sites. To be certain, that means more U.S. jobs and foreign investment - both good for the faltering U.S. economy. But ensuring American leadership in the burgeoning global wind market will clearly require significant, long-term public investment and support for both domestic markets and U.S. manufacturing. After years of negligence, getting ahead in the clean energy race won't be easy.

Senator Schumer and others who seek to bar Chinese manufacturers from stimulus funds are missing the point. Keeping foreign companies from stimulus funding is a misplaced effort to treat the symptom not the problem.

If the U.S. policy environment continues to focus on short-term measures to spur demand, we will consistently see investment accrue to foreign imports. If we want domestic manufacturers to supply the technology to meet our clean energy needs, the U.S. needs both long-term support for manufacturing capacity as well as consistent, targeted deployment incentives to create a stable domestic market. Equally important in the long-run will be large investments in research and innovation that can secure U.S. technological leadership and ensure the next generation of clean energy technologies are invented and commercialized here in the U.S.

Until the U.S. gets serious about a coordinated, consistent, and aggressive package of policies supporting U.S. clean energy innovation, manufacturing and markets, we will continue to see short-term bursts of funding, like the stimulus-funded cash grant program, end up invested in foreign innovation and technology.

China's Duoyuan Global Water releases 3Q09 results, shares down

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:56:00 GMT

Piper Jaffray maintains ‘overweight’ rating as the water treatment company posts stronger than expected top- and bottom-line results.

Japan Plans to Deploy Extra-Terrestrial Space-Based Solar Power Station

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:11:00 GMT

JAXA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, wants to compete with the United States' PG&E project for collecting solar power from outer space and beam it on Earth through clusters of lasers and microwaves.